Reviews of “Kasztner's Train”

“Not only did Kasztner strike a deal with the notorious Nazi Adolf Eichmann to buy the freedom of a train full of Jews, but the criteria for who got on the train were largely determined by their ability to pay. It’s a fascinating story about a Hungarian Jew who had the chutzpah to bargain with the Nazis. As Porter sees it, ‘If you’re in hell, who do you negotiate with but the Devil?’”

“The expression ‘no good deed goes unpunished’ could have stood as the epitaph for Rezsö Kasztner. …[he] was a controversial figure whose reputation wasn’t helped by his prickly personality. ‘He was not a warm and cuddly person,’ says Anna Porter, author of the fascinating and painstakingly researched biography… ‘He was smarter than most people. And he acted like he was smarter than most people.’”

"…In 444 pages of densely detailed prose, the fruit of six years of research on three continents, [Porter] vividly brings to life those frenetic months in Budapest…There is no doubt a great injustice had been done to Kasztner, and in this fascinating but very readable Holocaust history, Porter manages to rectify it."

“Perhaps the most important question Porter’s book asks is, what is the value of a human life? Kasztner attempted to save Jewish lives by assigning a monetary value to them. …It’s clear that Reszo Kasztner wanted to be a hero and had a huge ego. That shouldn’t diminish the danger he faced in his attempts to get a train and buy freedom for Jews who would otherwise have died in the camps.”

“Anna Porter’s intention in her new book, Kasztner’s Train, is clear from the start: to restore the reputation of her subject, Rezso Kasztner. When it came to saving lives, she writes in her introduction, ‘Kasztner achieved more in his way than any other individual in Nazi-occupied Europe.’ But this brief, unequivocal description, as Porter knows, isn’t sufficient. There is still, beneath the surface of Kasztner’s gripping personal drama, a maelstrom of moral ambiguity and tough ethical questions. …Porter describes Kasztner’s Train as popular history, but she has brought an impressive amount of scholarship to bear on the telling of this complex and controversial tale.”

, it’s crucial to read [Kasztner's train] and remind ourselves of the limitlessness of human brutality. Perhaps in our outrage we can begin to act upon our shared humanity, not on arbitrary differences.”

“…the most interesting, and perhaps controversial, section describes Kasztner’s mid-1950s trial in Israel on charges of collaboration. …Porter’s book makes clear that Kasztner ultimately became a casualty in the search for reasons why more Jews did not violently resist their oppressors. …It is obviously time that the reality of his accomplishments, as well as the price he and his family paid, are finally discussed.”